One-fifth of GPs say they are turning away patients who should be tested for coronavirus under the Federal Government’s criteria because they don’t have access to testing kits.

There is a growing alarm that Australia is failing to identify thousand of cases because authorities are still insisting that tests are generally restricted to new arrivals and close contacts of confirmed cases.

An Australian Doctor survey of 325 GPs, conducted between Wednesday and Sunday last week, suggests they believe too many cases have already fallen through the net.

And the vast majority of GPs (83%) also believe the testing criteria are too strict, describing them as clinically unsatisfactory.